Book Excerpt: Murder for Liar by Verlin Darrow

 

Murder for Liar by Verlin Darrow

Publication Date: May 15, 2023
Paperback:298

Goodreads

Tom is dangerously close to discovering where his threshold is-the point of no return for his sanity. His encounter with the killer represents one more bizarre hot potato he's forced to juggle instead of filing away neatly. It's not one too many, but what if the next one is? And could all the coincidences that keep happening to Tom be nothing more than that? Could a young woman named Zig-Zag really be an angel? How could a dog lead Tom to one of the most important clues? The questions pile up, much as the murders do.

Swept up in a perilous world where nothing is as it seems, Tom struggles to make sense of the decidedly dangerous, downright deadly scheme in which he has somehow unwittingly become a key player. Tom is about to discover that in this treacherous reality, the truth is far, far stranger than fiction...but the real danger is not knowing which is which.

Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Nobles

Excerpt

“I think she wants us to follow her," I told Zig-Zag.

“I can see that, but I think I’d prefer some human help. Hello?” she called one more time. “Anybody here?"

There was no reply. The dog watched us assiduously, her eyes gleaming. When we still didn’t move, she yipped, took another step, and coquettishly cocked her head again.

“I’m coming," I told her. “I can’t disappoint an old friend."

Zig-Zag sidled forward with me, and together we negotiated a maze of poorly lit aisles by following our canine guide. It was an eerie experience following this strange dog in an empty antique bookstore on a spiritual mission based on someone else’s vision. If at any time in my life prior to this, I’d been informed this episode was going to be part of my future, I’d have laughed.

We found ourselves in a back corner of the store in the fiction section, according to the faded blue notecard affixed to nearby shelves. The dog barked again to get our attention and then reared-up to put her paws on a small black volume near the bottom of the stacks.

“That’s the one, huh?" I asked, reaching down to pat her head.

She evaded my hand and barked again. It was an alto bark, not too deep and not too yippy.

“Get that book,” Zig-Zag said. “I want to see what it is.”

© Verlin Darrow

About the Author

Verlin Darrow is currently a psychotherapist who lives with his psychotherapist wife in the woods near the Monterey Bay in northern California. They diagnose each other as necessary. Verlin is a former professional volleyball player, country-western singer/songwriter, import store owner, and assistant guru in a small, benign cult, from which he graduated everyone when he left.

Before bowing to the need for higher education, a much younger Verlin ran a punch press in a sheetmetal factory, drove a taxi, worked as a night janitor, shoveled asphalt on a road crew, and installed wood floors. He barely missed being blown up by Mt. St. Helens, survived the 1985 Mexico City earthquake, and (so far) he’s successfully weathered his own internal disasters.

Verlin is the author of a psycho-spiritual mystery - Blood and Wisdom, as well as a fantasy thriller - Coattail Karma.

He encourages readers to visit his website or email him to find out more: verlindarrow.com or verlindarrow@gmail.com